New Study -National guidelines "persistent" Lymes questioned

National guidelines that discourage additional therapy for persistent Lyme disease are called into question by an analysis of the research supporting the guidelines.

Writing in Contemporary Clinical Trials, researchers find fault with four studies, all sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, that discourage further treatment with antibiotics for persistent symptoms of Lyme disease. Two of the four, according to the critique, did not include enough patients to detect a treatment effect; that is, they were underpowered. A third trial did find a treatment effect, but erroneously ascribed it to unmasking; and the fourth, according to the analysis, was "more reminiscent of a pilot study than a definitive clinical trial."